Who They Left Behind
by TheTimeTraveler24
Summary: Evie didn't think it was going to be so hard. It was something she had always wanted, but there was no way she could ever live up to their expectations. It was hard enough holding herself and her friends together let alone a whole world. They gave her this job, but they never thought about who they were leaving behind. Post D3


The sun rose up on the grassy land. The golden rays shone down on bricks and stone. It was beautiful. Not for the first time did Evie catch herself staring across the gorgeous sight in disbelief of how it was possible she was seeing this. She sat down criss cross in the grass and let her hands drift over them.

"_You four have been chosen to go to a different school. In Auradon," Maleficent told them._

Evie smiled fondly as she remembered putting up such a fight at the idea. It wasn't so much the chance to go, but the idea that she might be that lucky.

"So I got some mischief in my blood," she hummed softly. "Can you blame me? I never got no love." She ran her hands over the blades of grass.

"_What?!" Mal had protested._

Evie stood up and walked as slow as she could back towards her little cottage in the woods.

"Rotten to the core. Rotten to the core. Rotten to the core, who could ask for more?" Evie continued to hum as she walked. "I'm rotten to the core."

The cottage wasn't nearly as beautiful as the day she bought it. It had certainly seen better days, but it was home and home was all they had at this point. She opened the door with ease. They didn't bother to lock the doors during the day. No anymore. What was the point? If anyone wanted to take anything from the house, who was Evie to stand in their way. Nothing of much value was kept there.

"_I found out that fairy godmother blesses Ben with the wand at coronation and we all get to go," Evie told Mal._

"_I think it's time Benny Boo got himself a new girlfriend," Mal smirked. "I need a love spell."_

Evie swallowed as she passed through the front hallway. So maybe they did keep something of value, but if someone broke in to steal pictures of her and her friends, she didn't think she'd mind. Especially if it was one of them.

She stared at the first frame. Ben with a reluctant Mal after Evie forced her friend to take the picture after the game.

"_Give me an M! Give me an A! Give me an L! What does that spell?" Ben yelled._

"_MAL!" Everyone shouted._

Evie remembered being the loudest. Whether it was because she wanted to embarrass her friend or get back at the girl somehow for Maleficent banishing Evie and her mom, she didn't know. She smiled remembering Ben's song he sang while under the love spell. It wasn't followed by very fond memories, she reminded herself as she moved on to see the picture of Audrey and Chad next to the first frame.

"Evie?"

The blue haired girl spun around to find Dizzy looking at her. Now twenty, Dizzy reminded her of herself. She smiled. "Hey, Dizzy. Just looking at the pictures."

Dizzy didn't say anything, but just nodded. She stood there for a moment before adding, "He's still the same. Doug and Jay went to get some wood." She glanced at a picture of Evie with Mal, Jay, and Carlos. "You've never told me what that picture was from."

It wasn't very good and it was obviously taken by a phone. The group of friends were in one of the dorm rooms. They all looked faintly emotionally exhausted.

"That was after Ben and Mal's first date," Evie said carefully. "It was really wearing on us about what we were about to do."

"_You want to break Ben's love spell?" Evie asked Mal incredulously._

_Mal was startled. "Yeah! I've just been thinking, you know, when the villains finally do invade Auradon… Ben still being in love with me just seems a little extra… cruel."_

"Mal especially, I think," Evie continued quietly. "She was in love with Ben by then I think." Evie stared at the four unhappy faces. "I was falling for Doug too. And you know how much Carlos loves Dude. And Jay had tourney. We finally had something good, you know? And we were preparing to throw it all away." Evie fell silent. "Dizzy, did Celia take Audrey's supplies to Chad?" she asked, changing the subject.

Dizzy nodded. "She's going to stay there tonight. She doesn't want to walk back in the dark."

"I would have sent Gil with her if she said something," Evie said with a frown.

A mumble from upstairs jolted Dizzy. She bit her lip and hurried up the stairs. Leaving her to deal with him, Evie returned to her memories.

"_Mal? Give me the wand," Ben said calmly._

_Mal looked terrified. "Stay back!"_

Evie pulled the coronation picture off the wall. The four VKs were visibly happier and carefree. Ben had his arms around Mal who looked the happiest Evie had ever seen her.

"_I don't want to take over the world with evil," Mal told them. "It doesn't make me happy. I want to be with Ben. Because Ben makes me really happy."_

A sharp knock shook Evie from her thoughts. The blue haired princess opened the door cautiously. To her surprise, Uma pushed past her once the door opened.

"What are you doing here?" Evie asked quietly.

Uma cast a brief glance upwards. "He's still the same then?" Receiving no answer, she continued, "It's been three months. There's no sign of them on the Isle. I've been in every nook and cranny and I looked everywhere on that island. We need to start rebuilding things."

Evie shook her head. "Uma, they have to be there. We've looked everywhere else. The whole world has. I won't stop until I get answers."

"Yes, you will," Uma said flatly. "You promised to help rebuild when this was all over. You did it halfway, Evie. Everyone's getting food and shelter that needs it. You're checking up on Audrey and the others. You're even caring for _her_ dad! Now own up to your promise!" She shook her head angrily when Evie didn't say anything. "Host a cotillion or something! I've been listening to the local conversations on my way here…"

"_The Royal Cotillion is like getting engaged to be engaged to be engaged!" Jane explained excitedly._

Evie walked away from Uma abruptly. "I know what I said I'd do, but that was if I had all the answers. I DON'T HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS, UMA!" she shouted. Tears streamed down her face. "I wasn't ready for this to happen to me! I'm not like them, okay? Everything they did worked out great, but that's not me! I just need to find them and everything will go back to the way it was before!" She leaned her head back against the wall with her eyes squeezed shut. "I'd take being back on the Isle if I could wake up from this nightmare."

"_Ben?"_

"_Evie! Come on in."_

_Evie handed him the note and ring with a desperate look on her face._

"_This is my fault," Ben said in a panic. "This is my fault. I… I blew it. She's been under so much pressure lately and instead of being understanding, I just went all beast on her! I have to go there and apologize. I have to go there and beg her to come back."_

"You don't mean that," Uma said gently. "Look, I'm sorry for being all pushy, but you were left this one job, Evie. Rebuild. You have all of us to help you." She squeezed Evie's hand and pulled her in for a hug.

"I'm scared," Evie whispered. "I never thought for a second it would come to this. I should have asked more questions. I should have said how much I appreciated their help and their-"

"You did," Uma said firmly. "You told them so many times it was sickening."

Evie snorted. "I did tell them a lot, didn't I?" She huffed and shook her head. "You know, you were so horrible to us? You kidnapped Ben and asked us to give you the wand in exchange for his freedom. How original is that by the way?"

"Not very," Uma admitted with a smile. "I ruined Cotillion for you guys."

"_Mal, I wish I had time to explain."_

"_What are you saying?"_

"_It was love!" Uma interrupted with a giggle._

"_Don't you see, Mal? You were right. You knew that we weren't meant to be together! That's why you never told me that you loved me."_

Evie nodded. "Yeah, you spelled Ben - again, very original - and ruined Mal's life right in front of the whole of Auradon to see." She sighed wistfully.

"True love like that couldn't be contained for very long anyway," Uma said quietly. "Did I ever apologize for that?"

"You didn't have to," Evie said shaking her head. "You more than made up for it. Shrimpy."

Uma didn't say anything about the offending nickname. She headed to the door and paused after she opened it. "Think about what I said, okay? I'm going to Harry and Gil's. That third room better still be open for me."

"Bye, Uma," Evie said with a small smile. "Thanks for looking. I really do appreciate it."

"Of course," the sea witch's daughter said. She cast a glance up the stairs. "Let me know when he changes?" She left before Evie could say anything.

Evie stared at the door for a while. _His_ condition was slowly deteriorating. Nothing but their return could save him now. He didn't want to live. Didn't see a point in going on while his world had stopped spinning a long time ago.

There was one picture frame that was hanging backwards. They flipped the picture over because it marked the start of the disasters.

"_Did I mention… that I'm in love with you?"_

Evie could still remember every detail. How Ben had opened with it being the first spot he had met Mal and transitioned into his stupid love spell song before following his own lyrics into a kneel.

"_Mal, it's you and me. It's you and me forever. Will you marry me?"_

Evie knew the whole time. She planned it all, giving Ben the right suggestions and knowing what to push him away from. What Mal would like and what she wouldn't.

"Mal," Evie said quietly as she turned around the picture of her very best friend in the whole world looking radiant in her white wedding dress with her new husband by her side. "Mal," Evie repeated, starting to get choked up. "Mal, I really need you. I can't be you, Mal. I can't be Queen of Auradon."

"_I can't be Queen of Auradon," Mal announced to the crowd gathered to celebrate her and Ben's engagement. "I can't turn my back on the Isle," she said to Ben._

"I can't be you, Mal," Evie repeated. "How many times did I boast about being a princess? Too many to count, right? But I'm not fit for it, Mal! Why would you choose me?" she cried.

"_That's why I can't be Queen of just Auradon! I have to be Queen of the Isle too," Mal said. "It's time that we take down the barrier."_

"_The barrier will come down!" Ben declared._

Evie made her way up the stairs to the large guest room that was occupied full time. She cleared her throat. "Dizzy? Could I have a moment alone with him?"

Dizzy looked up and nodded.

As soon as Dizzy was gone, Evie shut the door and sat in the chair the younger girl had vacated. She looked down at the lifeless face before her.

"_I'm sure you two will be very happy together," Hades told Ben and Mal._

Evie cleared her throat again. "Hi, Hades. It's Evie. I… I haven't given up yet. I know they're out there and I'm going to find them. But I need you to believe that too. I need you to wake up, okay? I need help and you're the only one who can help me. I love her as much as you do. I need you to be awake so I can be strong for you and you can be strong for me because we're practically family, you know? She was my sister in all but blood." Evie searched the god's deadened eyes for any spark of life. "Come on! Just WAKE UP ALREADY!" she shouted, shaking Hades.

A hand grabbed Evie's forearm. She felt a surge of power travel up her arm and throughout her whole body. Then it was gone. She watched as the arm Hades had grabbed her with fell down and he grabbed her hand. Something was pressed into her grasp, but Evie couldn't tell what it was until the hand went slack and Hades closed his eyes. A small smile rested on his lips.

Evie held up the object Hades gave her. A glowing blue ember. Hades Ember. For the first time in years, a true smile graced Evie's mouth as her lips curled up into a grin that rivaled the cheshire cat's.

"I'm going to find you, Mal," Evie promised, eyes glowing ice blue. "I'm going to find you and Ben. I swear I'll find you, and I'm going to bring you home."

* * *

**A/N: I plan to make a sequel to this story. If you're lost, this story takes place after D3. Mal and Ben had their wedding and then some time after that, stuff happened and a major battle happened and Mal and Ben went missing leaving Evie to take up the mantle.**

**Do you want to know what this story started out as? I watched a "Mal and Ben: Their Story" youtube video and I was going to have the characters watch it at their wedding, but then this happened. I tried to be very careful about who was missing and who was upstairs until the end. If you notice, all the flashbacks are actually memories Evie was present for and they were all very central points in the VKs' lives.**

**And that's enough from me. Please comment your thoughts and suggestions for a sequel!**


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